For many years, enterprise organizations around the world have been interested in using virtual desktops and apps to address a wide range of use cases including branch offices, call centers, contractors, BYO employees and offshore developers. In fact, 2015 was no different with roughly 78% of respondents in a TechTarget survey stating that they were planning on implementing VDI, 43% app virtualization and 23% terminal services/RDSH.
The benefits are clear: For end-users, desktop virtualization means they can get work done anywhere on any device and be more productive. For IT, desktop and application virtualization provides a much needed platform to streamline management, enhance security and improve operational efficiencies.
But despite the uptick in adoption and the clear benefits, the cost and the complexity often associated with desktop virtualization have caused some organizations to think twice.
At VMware, we are out to change all of that by introducing a brand new approach to desktop and application virtualization that promises to have customers up and running 30x faster and provide them with the ability to get started for as little as $1.20/named user per day.*
Formerly called Project Enzo, this new Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode service will be available to customers this quarter.
A true hybrid cloud solution, VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode provides customers with a single pane of glass to simply and quickly deliver and manage all of their virtual desktops, applications and workspaces on-premises. Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode joins the growing family of Horizon Air cloud services from VMware and is designed to combine the economic benefits of cloud-based VMware virtual desktops and application technology, with the simplicity of hyper-converged infrastructure. Purpose-built to support hybrid cloud deployments with a fully multi-tenant cloud-scale architecture, VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode consists of two main components that uniquely support workspace delivery:
- Cloud Control Plane – A cloud-based management layer hosted on VMware vCloud Air, this single pane of glass will enable IT to manage and deliver virtual desktops running on hyper-converged infrastructure appliances sitting on-premises.
- Horizon Node technology – The Horizon Node technology will reside on hyper-converged infrastructure and connect to the Cloud Control Plane and will provide intelligent orchestration, delivery and management of workloads.
This next-generation approach to virtual workspaces will feature several benefits for our customers, including:
- Simple Out-of-the-Box Setup – Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode enabled hyper-converged appliances will offer plug-and-play simplicity so virtual desktops and applications can be up and running quickly.
- Create and Scale Desktops at Cloud Speed – VMware Instant Clone technology integrated with VMware App Volumes™ and VMware User Environment Manager technologies will allow IT administrators to create and scale desktops at cloud speed.
- Modern Approach to Application Management – Maintenance windows will be eliminated with seamless software updates that can be applied instantly to Windows images and applications. Easily and quickly deliver and update applications at scale with integrated App Volumes technology.
- Hybrid Cloud Flexibility – Virtual desktops and applications can be located on-premises on hyper-converged infrastructure, while being completely cloud managed. Now with Horizon Air, you have the ability to take advantage of both cloud-hosted and cloud-managed virtual desktops and apps from a single cloud service. New platform features and enhancements will also be made available for easy updates via the Cloud Control Pane.
- Right-Sized Infrastructure – Upcoming solutions from our partners such as Dell, EMC, Sphere 3D and others will enable customers to choose from a variety of hyper-converged appliances that have been right-sized for virtual desktops and apps and help avoid over-provisioning of resources. Take a look at this VIDEO to hear more from them.
The end result for customers is a radically different approach to on-premises workspace delivery that is designed top-to-bottom to be fast to deploy, and easy to manage. From the hardware and software stack on-premises, to the management plane in the cloud, Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode will change the way organizations think about VDI.
Customers can take advantage of Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode software for as low as $16/named user per month or $26/concurrent connection per month. Customers looking to move to a fully cloud-hosted offering with Horizon Air can also leverage desktops, applications and disaster recovery as a service starting for as low as $35/ concurrent connection per month. Be sure to contact your local VMware rep to find out more.*
We hope you will be as excited as we are about this announcement so we encourage you to learn more about VMware Horizon Air Hybrid-Mode at http://www.vmware.com/cloud-services/desktop/horizon-air-hybrid-mode/.
*Note: Prices will vary depending on infrastructure appliance used.
